Hawaiʻi Democrats must raise minimum wage
All Hawaiʻi workers should be able to make ends meet with one job, and it’s our legislature’s responsibility to make that a reality.
Minimum wage has stayed at $10.10 for 4 years. With high inflation, will lawmakers make any changes?
The latest state data show a single adult would need to make about $17 to $18 an hour at a full-time job to afford to live in Hawaiʻi.
Hawaiʻi House leaders shelve bills that would help workers
House leaders are resisting union pressure to revive bills this year that would raise the minimum wage and exempt jobless benefits from state income taxes.
Dark clouds are looming over Hawaiʻi even as the economy appears to be improving
Economic experts say many people are worse off than they were before the pandemic and a lower unemployment rate is simply masking deeper problems.
House leadership bails out businesses but bails on worker relief
Unemployment insurance benefits should be exempt from Hawaiʻi income tax, but a Senate bill calling for that has unfortunately stalled.
Proposal to raise Hawaiʻi’s minimum wage to $12 remains alive
Many who wrote testimony in support of the wage increase called for an amendment to raise the hourly minimum to $17 by 2026.
Minimum wage hikes have had little long-lasting effect on business
Most companies already pay above minimum wage and those that have had to raise pay came through it relatively unscathed.